Running a live session of D&D Fifth Edition is far easier than you’d think. First of all, you need an audience of nice people – we have plenty of those in Glasgow. Then you need some good, funny players. I had those too, all of them friends of mine, all of them involved in the TV comedy game in some capacity. Then you need Dungeons & Dragons itself. I had the Player’s Handbook, the Dungeon Master’s Guide and the Monster Manual behind my DM screen. Oh, and I also had the new Dungeon Master’s Screen.

My average life expectancy in Catacomb Kids [official site] is measured in minutes. I’ve died within seconds of starting a run through the procedurally generated Spelunky-like, clobbered by monsters or reduced to a blood puddle by swarming piranhas. The first couple of minutes are the hardest part, as I struggle to make sense of my situation and abilities, and if I survive for a couple of levels, I’m likely to die because I deserve to rather than because the game decides to kill me.

Metal Gear Solid V’s release date is so important that there’s been a countdown and everything. TICK TOCK, it went. TICK TOCK. And then, moments ago, a cuckoo popped out screaming “SEPTEMBER 1ST, SEPTEMBER 1ST” before the timer had hit zero. Oops.

I’m at a Unity [official site] special event at GDC and I’ve had a donut for breakfast. Take everything I’m writing below with a pinch of the sugar rushing through my veins, but Unity have just announced that Unity 5 is available to download now and that there’s a free, no-royalty Personal Edition for use by small companies.

When Resident Evil Revelations 2 [official site] Episode One released without the local co-op feature that had been promised on the Steam Store page, I was outraged. So outraged that anyone in the same room might have heard a faint sigh if they’d been paying particularly close attention. It seems likely that Capcom were listening because they’ve added local co-op to the campaign and raid modes of the game, currently in the form of an open beta patch. For anyone who is still unhappy, “refunds are available through Steam”.

OH GOD. Why am I doing this? Well, partly because it’s high time I learned how, and partly because we’re allowed to stream Cities Skylines before we’re allowed to write reviews. Thus, in a few minutes I shall leave my comfort zone to bring you live footage of me playing (trying to play) Paradox’s new city-builder. It’s due to go live at 3.45pm UK time, but you’ll be able to watch the whole thing retroactively later if you prefer.
… [visit site to read more]

Guild Wars 2 [official site] launched with a promise – to fix MMOs. Strident, attention-grabbing, patently doomed schtick that was nevertheless suffused with just enough gosh-shucks-darn-it-I-want-to-see-them-try zest to make it a journey worth tracking. That was two years ago.

The mission met with mixed results, as lead designer Isaiah Cartwright admitted to me when we spoke in Brighton during a hands-on with the game’s first expansion, Heart of Thorns. We were among the first to play the expansion and all of the details are below.

Even the tallest of titans couldn’t stand against the tide of free game-making for long. With so many developers turning to Unity to make their own games, and Unity’s capabilities improving rapidly, Ye Olde Unreal Engine was starting to look like something of a dinosaur despite being the go-to framework for a great many blockbuster action titles. And now it, too, is free, albeit with one big proviso. While this is primarily big news for devs (more on that below), it does also mean that anyone can now make their own maps for the work-in-progress, community-made Unreal Tournament sequel/remake. Which is currently also free. There’s also a new, super-shiny map to try out the next-gen engine with.

I haven’t been entirely sure what to make of Firewatch [official site], the upcoming great outdoors adventure/exploration title from a mini-supergroup of ex-Double Fine/ Telltale/ Lucasarts/ Klei/ Lionhead devs, because I wasn’t entirely sure what it was. Having just watched a quarter of an hour of it, I still don’t entirely know what it’s going to become, but I really, really like it. It seems to have this laid-back pace and tone and tons of slow-burn character-building while still being very, well, gamey. I really hope that pace and tone can be maintained throughout. Also it looks like somewhere I’d really love to go and live in for a while.

The footage and my own assorted as-they-happened thoughts, including observations on underwear, caves and wedding rings, are below.
… [visit site to read more]